MOT emissions failure rate doubles in a year

The number of cars failing their MOT due to problems with their emissions has more than doubled in a year. The MOT test was changed in May this year and data from the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) reveals that since then 744,592 cars have failed to meet the test’s emissions standards. Over the same period in 2017 350,472 cars failed the emission portion of the test. The number of diesels failing has quadrupled compared with the same period in 2017, while the number of petrols has also risen. Test changes Since May 20, cars have been graded under new fault categories – minor, major and dangerous – and emissions testing has been tougher. Read more: MOT changes: half of drivers still in the dark Under the new test a car is automatically classed as having a “major fault” and failing the MOT if testers can see smoke of any colour coming from the exhaust or find evidence that the diesel particulate filter (DPF), where fitted, has been tampered with or removed. Since May 20, 238,971 diesel cars have failed the new emissions test, more than four times the number that failed in the same period in 2017, when 58,000 were refused a certificate. The number of petrols failing has also risen significantly, from 292,468 to 505,721. The new test has also seen a 448 per cent increase in the number of diesel vans failing. These have increased from 3,585 in 2017 to 19,648 over the same period in 2018…. [Read full story]